The subject invention relates to an automotive seat assembly which may be partially stowed within a floor of a vehicle.
Many vehicle seat assemblies include a bench type seat having a seat cushion portion and a seat back portion. Bench type seats are commonly found in passenger sedans, sport utility vehicles, pickup trucks, vans, and mini-vans. The seat back can be fixedly mounted or pivotally mounted to the seat cushion. A riser is typically mounted to the seat cushion for supporting the bench seat above the vehicle floor. For certain vehicle applications, such as in passenger sedans, the riser is permanently bolted to the vehicle floor. The trend in the sport utility, van, and mini-van industry is to removably mount the riser to the floor such that the bench seat may be easily removed from the vehicle. These risers are commonly mounted to the floor by a number of releasable latches. These bench seats are typically the second or third row rear seats.
To remove the rear seat, a user first releases the latches on the riser. The rear seat may then be carried, slid, or wheeled out of the vehicle. It is desirable to remove these rear seats in order to provide additional cargo space for transporting large or bulky items.
Due to the size and weight of the rear seat, their removal can sometimes be burdensome and difficult to accomplish. Further, the removal may also be impractical and may damage the interior of the vehicle. Finally, the rear seat assembly is relatively large and once removed from the vehicle may be difficult to maneuver and store.
One solution to the above recognized problem is to have a stowable seat assembly which collapses into a floor of a vehicle. Examples of some prior art stowable seat assemblies are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,195,795 and 5,269,581. These collapsible seat assemblies have the seat back and seat cushion fold onto each other and then collapse into a cavity within the floor. The seat back and seat cushion are of a typical manufacture which includes a frame, foam pad and trim cover material. The seat assembly is therefore relatively bulky and requires a relatively large cavity to be formed within the floor. These current designs occupy a substantial amount of space and in many vehicle designs may be prohibitively too large.
Accordingly, it is desirable to develop a seat assembly which may be stowed within a vehicle, preferably at least partially stowed within a floor of the vehicle, without occupying a large amount of interior space. It is also desirable to have the stowable seat easy to use, lightweight and comfortable.
An automotive seating assembly is adapted for being at least partially stowed within a floor of a vehicle. The seating assembly comprises a seat cushion having a rear portion and a front portion with a seating portion disposed there between. A rear support bracket defines the rear portion of the seat cushion and is adapted for movement between a use position supporting the rear portion above the floor and a stowed position disposed within the floor. A front beam defines the front portion of the seat cushion and is adapted for movement between a use position supporting the front portion above the floor and a stowed position disposed within the floor. A substantially flexible mesh material has a first end secured to the front beam and a second end secured to the rear support bracket to define the seating portion of the seat cushion and is adapted for movement between a support position extending between the front and rear portions above the floor and a retracted position collapsed below the floor. The seating assembly is characterized by a retractor integrally connected with one of the ends of the mesh material to mount the mesh material to one of the rear support bracket and the front beam for retracting the mesh material between the support position with the mesh material unwound from the retractor and the retracted position with the mesh material wound within the retractor such that the mesh material is stored within the retractor when the rear support bracket and the front beam are in the stowed position disposed within the floor.
Accordingly, the subject invention provides a seat cushion which may be easily stored within a floor of a vehicle. The seat cushion of the subject invention is of a unique and novel construction such that the seat cushion collapses to a relatively thin profile for storage into a relatively small cavity within the floor. The seat cushion is also easy to deploy and store and a mesh material provides a comfortable seating surface.